Gautam Gambhir
I do not usually follow a rigid fitness regimen, and most of it depends upon what goals I have in my mind.Collection: Fitness
I think a captain is someone who captains on the cricket field but, most of the leadership that happens is off the cricket field. It's very easy to captain people on the cricket field, but if you can start leading them off the cricket field, and show them that trust, what you have in them.Collection: Leadership
I think the only time I show my emotions and anger is on the cricket field; otherwise, I've mellowed down. And with age, I think, with age you always end up mellowing down.Collection: Anger
Every day, I get up to hit the gym; the schedule is such that it gives me the requisite energy to last the entire day. I stress on cardiovascular exercises, and the workout is programmed with my sporting schedule. Most of the fitness schedule is based on what I require for my upcoming matches.Collection: Fitness
I've always maintained - a captain is only as good as his team. It is not about my leadership, it is not about me.Collection: Leadership
Most of my diet is low on carbohydrates and fats.Collection: Diet
One needs to be clear headed. I believe in all-round fitness.Collection: Fitness
Sometimes it's important to get out of that comfort zone and, I think, try new things, and sometimes you can express yourself better.
Cricket is a team game. If you want fame for yourself, go play an individual game.
My mood depends on how I treat my toothbrushes. Being a skipper is a strenuous job, and when you are going through a rough phase, obviously you start taking out your frustration. You can't take it out on anyone: you can't take it out on your teammates or your wife. The only person that is left is your toothbrush.
Ultimately, the one who scores the winning run is a finisher, irrespective of whether he's an opening batsman or No 11. What matters is how much you are contributing. If you can win matches for your team, you are a finisher.
It's not a successful captain that makes a successful team.
The face of the team are the people who're playing on the cricket field. The team is not about one individual.
Our flag is our identity, and we can't disrespect or let anyone else disrespect our identity.
I think only a batsman will be able to tell you about the goose bumps he gets after hitting a perfect cover drive. I'm one of them.
I think that a leader is someone that needs to make an impact on, off the cricket field and in their lives as well.
I think Delhiites know how to party, but Kolkata has people who know how to celebrate. I think that's the main difference.
No one can act like Bachchan saab or bat like Virender Sehwag.
Whatever good or bad is said by former cricketers is considered gospel. Our media should not blow out of proportion the opinion of former cricketers.
When I'm playing a team sport, it's not about one individual, it's about everyone, from me to the other 23 people who were there, to all the support staff who've worked very hard behind the scenes.
I've always maintained that the problem in India is that we only give credit to big contributions.
I play for India, I play for the 100 million people of my country.
I grew up playing on unprepared surfaces where your wicket depended on quickly adapting to the bounce. As a kid, I could never differentiate off-spin from leg-spin. All I looked to do was to try to hit the ball before it pitched.
Yes, I'm the same grumpy Gautam who smiles very less on the field. I go very quiet before going into the match. I guess it works for me, though my team-mates keep telling me it is just a game.
Being an impatient guy, even off the field, I would always look to score runs and score them quickly. Sometimes I panic if runs are not coming.
It used to hurt me that people thought I didn't have the technique and the temperament to play Test cricket.
To me, form is not about scoring runs but how you feel about your game. Sometimes the runs are not there, but you know you are batting well, and that is good form for me.
Any quality player can adjust well to the different demands. It is like a good tennis player who is expected to adjust to the clay at the French Open, the grass at Wimbledon, the hard courts of the U.S. and the heat of the Australian Open. A professional is expected to do all that.
I can bat in the morning, afternoon, evening, night, on ice, desert, wherever and whenever. It is almost nirvana for me. It takes me away from the stresses of life.
I am a great believer that a captain is as good as his team.
I believe in backing players and helping them out with their game.
When you come out of your comfort zone, you can express yourself in front of the whole world, and there was no better stage to express yourself as a batsman and as a leader than IPL.
I think you need to be a leader, not a captain. You may have seen a lot of captains in this country, but the most important thing is to be a leader.
If a youngster can come up to me and share his problems or share his experiences or share something that he does off cricket, that can obviously help you build a better relation with one-on-one, and that can help you captain him on the cricket field.
At one point, when I didn't make the 2007 World Cup squad, I was very, very frustrated. Then I became very hard on myself. Whenever I used to go to the nets, or when I trained in the gym, I was very hard on myself. I couldn't sleep; I used to think a lot. Very, very desperate to make a comeback.
When I got dropped for the World Cup, there were times I didn't want to play anymore. I didn't want to practise. I couldn't motivate myself. Then I said, 'Look what are the options?' Cricket is the only option. Whether I play happily or sadly, it's still all I have. There are not a lot of things I am good at.
Ask any batsman what gives him maximum satisfaction. It's scoring runs, whether it's Ranji Trophy or any form of the game. When you get back to your room, knowing that you have scored a hundred, it gives you satisfaction.
One thing I realised was that everyone is different. You can't compare two human beings.
I came into the Indian team and was touted as someone who did well only against weaker oppositions. There were doubts creeping into my game. I was looking for support, someone to put an arm around my shoulder and say I am good and I belong to this place. Virender Sehwag is that someone for me.
Every relation forms its own defined and non-defined rules.
In India, you need to look intense to be classified a good cricketing brain.
If you start beating opponents in their backyard is when you give yourself a chance to remain No.1.
White ball cricket can be taxing on bowlers and can be a distraction for a youngster, too.
T20 runs should only be a criteria to get selected for a T20 side. The moment you start picking players in the one-day format by their T20 performance, then you are giving your domestic 50-over competitions absolutely no relevance.
You need different skills to do well in 50-overs cricket. You need completely different skills to do well in Test cricket. You need different skills to do well in T20 cricket. It is not the same.
Kolkata Knight Riders is not about me. It is about the team.
When you go out on the field, you don't go out to make friends... I play to win the game and not just to compete.
Winning is something that makes people happy.
According to me, there couldn't be a better choice for India's coach than Anil Kumble.
Ravi Shastri has been claiming that Indian team was very successful under him, but he never told us that India lost ODI series to Bangladesh, lost ODI series to South Africa at home.